Thursday, January 3, 2013

The W-Files: Ed and Lorraine Warren

Trailblazing paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren
have a case log that rivals that of Fox Mulder and surpasses any ghost
hunting group operating today. Before TAPS and Zak Bagans turned spirit
seeking into a mainstream hobby, the Warrens were involved in what are
arguably the most important instances of paranormal activity in
history. They brought media attention to the paranormal without
appearing beside Anton LaVey dressed in devil suits and supporting
Satanism. They brought a scientific point of view to claims of the
supernatural at a time when the subject of ghosts were nothing but
laughable among scholars and the public at large.

Sometimes I think of my research as likened to string theory.
All these Medicine Show attractions are connected, possibly even
vibrating on the same spooky frequency (my theory is if audible it would
be close to the chord of E minor.). Along the Lost Creek String, a
butterfly effect has led us from one subject to the next for some time
now. Our journey has led us to delve into the Warren’s case files.

Ed and Lorraine Warren

There are
plenty of skeptics quick to dismiss the Warrens as charlatans, frauds
who exploit families and the public to make a buck. When asked about
such claims the Warrens say they have never charged for their services.
When they had to travel for investigations, they did ask that their
accommodations be paid for. Other than that, their income is only from
book sales and movie deals. While not charging for their services, this
is another case where the stories are so sensational we are
entertained. Whether some details were fudged a tad, or every claim of
paranormal activity the Warrens ever made were complete fabrications, I
have no problem paying $8 for one of their books I’m waiting to arrive
from Amazon. I’ll pay that admission price to hear about the Smurl
haunting from their perspective.
Ed and Lorraine Warren were high school sweethearts. Ed lived in a
haunted house as a child and wouldn’t go inside until one of his parents
arrived home. Lorraine saw auras around people from the age of nine
and later developed her psychic abilities into something more. The two
met on a blind date. Lorraine wrote in her diary that night, “This is
the man I’m going to spend my life with.” She says as she thought of
him she wasn’t seeing the lanky teenager she had went to the movies
with, she saw him as an older man, the portly fellow she indeed spent
her life with.
While Lorraine cultivated her psychic abilities, Ed studied demonology
and became well versed in the occult. The Warrens were called in on
some of the most famous paranormal cases of the late 20th century. The
Smurl haunting and the Amityville Horror have already been discussed at
the Medicine Show, you can read about them in our archive. Ed sadly
passed away in 2006. Lorraine continues to carry on their legacy. She
has appeared on several episodes of A&E’s Paranormal State, gives
speaking engagements, operates the Warren’s Occult Museum, and heads up
the New England Society for Psychic Research. Here’s a look at a few
more of the cases the Warrens worked on.

The Real Haunting in Connecticut
Here’s that “based on true events” meme again. “The Haunting in
Connecticut” was released to theaters in 2009. Not a bad movie in our
opinion. While a lot of artistic license was taken to make a scary
movie, Loraine Warren says what really happened in Southington,
Connecticut was much scarier than any movie could be. In the 1980s
Allen and Carmen Snedeker moved their family into a rental house on 208
Meridian Avenue in Southington. She had been traveling 100 miles each
way taking her son, Phillip, to the University hospital to receive
treatments for his Hodgkin’s lymphoma. There is some controversy as to
whether the Snedekers were aware of it before they moved in or not, but
the house they rented had formerly been the Hallahan Funeral Home.
Carmen says they found out after discovering mortuary equipment in the
basement and inquiring to neighbors.
Spooky phenomena that would continue for two years began soon after
they moved in. Phillip and his brother made the basement their bedroom
and soon reported seeing apparitions. His parents at first attributed
this to the treatments he was receiving for his cancer. Then Phillip
began to change. His personality became dark. He wrote dark poetry and
began wearing leather. Things came to a head when Phillip attacked his
cousin who was staying with the family. With no other choice his
parents had him committed to a mental hospital. Before he left, he
warned them that when he was taken away the evil would attack everyone
else. Sure enough
with Phillip gone the activity continued, and increased. Unseen hands
touched them, more apparitions were seen, and strange noises were heard.
One apparition was described as having high cheekbones, long black hair
and pitch black eyes while another frequently seen had white hair and
eyes and wore a pinstriped tuxedo. Its feet seemed to constantly be in
motion. While cleaning the kitchen, Carmen claimed the mop water turned
blood red. While taking a shower the shower curtain mysteriously wrapped
itself around Carmen and nearly suffocated her. The table would be set
for dinner and when the family entered the room they would find that the
dishes had put themselves away. Both Carmen and her niece claimed to
have been fondled by the unseen hands.

The Snedeker Home

In
desperation the Snedekers contacted Ed and Lorraine Warren. The
Warrens came to the house and stayed for nine weeks. Research suggested
that one or more former employees of the Funeral home had been involved
in necrophilia (getting freaky with dead bodies) and possible
necromancy (practicing dark magic involving dead bodies). There was a
trap door in the master bedroom that held a hoist that had been used to
bring coffins up from the basement. The family reported hearing the
chains moving in the night. Upon investigating Ed says he saw two women
dancing in circles. When he approached them they disappeared. Ed gave
a great piece of investigating advice about this incident, saying you
shouldn’t approach an apparition because you could disrupt the molecular
and magnetic fields being used to manifest. Just let the apparition
come to you. Soon
both Al and Carmen were claiming to be raped and sodomized by the entity
on a regular basis. They went on the Sally Jessy Raphael show to talk
about their story. The Warrens experienced the smells of decaying
flesh, witnessing people being slapped by the demon, and hearing what
sounded like hundreds of birds taking flight. The Warrens decided it
was necessary for a full-scale exorcism to be performed. Once this was
done, the family seemed to be freed of their oppression from the evil
entity.

To see an interview with Carmen and learn more about the case watch the following video:

The Haunting of West Point
While attending a scheduled lecture on the paranormal and their
findings, the Warrens were met with an unexpected request when they
arrived at West Point in 1972. Upon arrival they were escorted to the
office of Major Donald Bolling who briefed them on occurrences happening
in the home of West Point’s Superintendent. After the scheduled
lecture and dinner, the Warrens went to the Superintendent’s home.
The Superintendent’s quarters was officially known as the Sylvanus
Thayer Mansion. The Warrens met with the General and his wife who told
them nothing macabre or tragic had ever happened in the house’s
history. Nevertheless they were experiencing strange occurrences. Most
notably a bed downstairs would constantly un-make itself and a
mischievous pickpocket spirit would take wallets and other belongings
from guests, later to be found upstairs in the master bedroom. Although
they themselves had not seen any, apparitions had been reported by
staff over the years.
In the kitchen they were shown a cutting board with a wet spot. The
General told them that no matter how many times or how hard they tried
to dry the spot, it would reappear wet. Continuing through the house
Lorraine felt a presence in one of the back bedrooms. She saw John F.
Kennedy standing next to her. The General confirmed that this was the
room Kennedy used when he visited West Point.

Lorraine Warren

In
one upstairs bedroom Lorraine picked up the spirit of an elderly
woman. She described her as a very wise woman who shared a burden with a
man in her life, but the man wasn’t her husband. They were then told
this was the room where Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s mother had stayed while
her son was the West Point Superintendent.
The room in which the bunk that un-made itself was stayed locked. The
General unlocked it for the Warrens and they found the bed, of course,
unmade. In a trance state Lorraine was contacted by the spirit a black
man who seemed attached to the room. Through communicating with him she
ascertained that he had served as a soldier and had been accused,
though later acquitted, of murder. He told her his name was Greer. She
believed the room was where he was held during the murder investigation
and couldn’t cross over because of his guilt and feelings of having
lost his honor. Lorraine says she assisted the man in successfully
crossing over. The
Warrens admitted they couldn’t locate the presence responsible for the
mischief, although it could be deliberately hiding from them. The
missing wallets and belongings were especially troubling as it was the
job of the Superintendent to entertain top military brass in the home.
Apparently they weren’t too disappointed with the answers the Warrens
provided. Just over a week later they received a phone call asking if
they could please do something about the ghost of a civil war soldier
who was refusing to leave one of the dormitories and they were in need
of the space.

The Brookfield Demon Murder Case
This case not only involves the expected paranormal activity and
demonic possession, but also an actual murder. It began in July of
1980. David Glatzel accompanied his parents to visit friends. He fell
asleep there. Awakening from his nap, he saw what he described as an
old man who appeared charred and had hooves. He was wearing a plaid
shirt and jeans.
His mother thought it was only a nightmare he’d had, but he saw the man
again at their home. This time David claimed the old man turned into a
beast and flew, and was inside the house. He said the old man muttered,
chanting, and said he was coming for his soul. Later that night David
appeared to be beaten by an unseen entity. This began happening on a
regular basis. The family had a Catholic priest come bless the house
but it didn’t have any effect on David.
12 days after the first incident the family contacted Ed and Lorraine
Warren. David’s mother witnessed unseen hands choke her son. Lorraine,
being a clairvoyant, sensed a black, misty form next to David which she
said suggested a malevolent presence. David’s condition worsened. He
began to growl and hiss, spoke in unknown languages, and recited
biblical scriptures and passages from Paradise Lost by John Milton.
Around this time Arne Johnson, the boyfriend of David’s older sister
Debbie, came to stay with the family during their troubling time. The
Warrens arranged for three exorcisms to be performed on David. Arne
would assist the clergy in restraining David when he would thrash about
with what was described as supernatural strength and even levitate off
the bed.

The Glatzel home

During one of these sessions David was asked to name the demon
inside him. He recited 43 names. Ed later went into the study to
attempt to confront what the family had come to call “the Beast.” Ed
says the 43 demons came at him “like a kaleidoscope” and called it the
most frightening moment of his life.
During the final exorcism Arne became so frustrated with sympathy for
David he taunted the demons, demanding they enter him and leave the boy
alone. It seems they did. A few days later Arne went out to run some
errands and says he was attacked by the demon. He saw a demon he
described as looking exactly like the devil, pointing at a tree. The
car mysteriously went out of control and hit the tree. Another
encounter with the Beast at his own home is when Arne believes he truly
became possessed after looking directly into its black eyes.
David’s condition got better, but the activity never completely
subsided. He still asked to sleep with the light on years later.
Meanwhile Debbie and Arne moved back to their place and Debbie was hired
by Alan Bono as a dog groomer at his dog kennel. Arne’s behavior
changed and Debbie feared that he too was possessed. Debbie said Arne
would go into a trance and growl, and then later have no memory of it.
The Warrens arranged for a series of exorcisms on Arne, one that
involved three priests directly from the Vatican. When multiple rites
proved unsuccessful the priests knew the story would end in tragedy.
The Warrens even contacted the Brookfield police department to warn them
that the situation was becoming dangerous.

A scene from the film "The Demon Murder Case"

On
Feb. 16, 1981 Arne called in sick to work. He went to the kennel where
Debbie worked. Bono took the group out to lunch. Everyone had some
wine, Bono more than the others. When they returned Arne fixed Bono’s
stereo. According to an account given by Debbie Glatzel, Bono then
invited them upstairs to his apartment. The television was turned on
and the volume was very loud. Bono became agitated and began punching
his fist into the palm of his hand. Debbie decided it was time to
leave. Bono grabbed Debbie’s niece Mary, also a kennel employee, by the
arm and wouldn’t let go.
Arne demanded Bono release her. Mary broke free and ran for the car.
The two men stood squared off. A growling sound came from Arne, there
was a flash through the air, and then Arne walked off into the woods.
Bono continued to punch his palm. Then he fell. He had suffered
several stab wounds on his chest and stomach. Bono died hours later.
Arne was found two miles from the scene and taken to jail. It should be
mentioned that this was the first murder that ever occurred in the town
of Brookfield. The
day after the murder Loraine Warren called the Brookfield police
telling them Arne was possessed. A media frenzy ensued. Arne Johnson’s
trial began on Oct. 28, 1981 in Danbury, Connecticut Superior Court.
His lawyer entered an unprecedented plea of not guilty by reason of
demonic possession but the judge quickly ruled that no such defense
existed and instead accepted a plea that Johnson had acted in
self-defense. The Warrens and others involved in the case tried to
offer testimony on Johnson's behalf but was not allowed to speak in
court. After three days of deliberation the jury returned a guilty
verdict and Johnson served 5 years of his 20 year sentence.

A Demonic Werewolf in London
The story of Bill Ramsey first came to the attention of the Warrens
when they caught a news story about him on television. When they
watched the segment of the man who had attacked people and claimed to be
a werewolf, Ed became interested. Lorraine, perhaps because of her
clairvoyant abilities, felt a desire and need to help this man.
So Ed and Lorraine traveled to London where they met Bill Ramsey and
learned his story. Bill Ramsey told them how his trouble began when he
was nine years old. While playing outside Bill felt a strange coldness
come over him. There was a very foul odor. Bill said he felt a change
within himself. He no longer felt like a child. There was a coldness
inside him that would remain for years. His parents called him inside.
Images of himself as a wolf flashed through his mind. He tripped on a
fence post and fell. He heard an animalistic growl then realized it was
coming from him. Bill seized the fence post which had been moored deep
into the ground, and the nine year old tore it out of the earth. By
the time his father rushed to him he was tearing the metal fencing
attached to the post apart with his bare hands. Bill knew something had
happened that couldn’t be undone.
Bill Ramsey grew to be a man and married. He worked as a carpenter
and started raising a family, and then the incidents began again. One
evening while driving home he suddenly felt a searing pain in his
chest. His breathing became irregular and a cold sweat covered his
body. The pain in his chest got worse and Ramsey headed for nearby
Southend Hospital. He made it into the emergency room, praying this
wasn’t one of his wolf episodes. A nurse on duty saw him arrive and
rushed to his side. Another, seeing the poor condition he was in,
followed with a gurney. They swiftly moved Ramsey into one of the
emergency room examination stalls. Ramsey felt a rumbling, like gas at
first, start in his stomach. The rumbling traveled up his chest and an
awful roar erupted from his mouth. Bill felt his hands curl into claws.Ramsey said before he knew what he was doing he grabbed one of the nurse’s arms and sank teeth his into her. It
just so happened that a rookie police officer was making his usual
rounds and entered the hospital to hear the roaring coming from the exam
room. When the cop arrived Bill was crouched in a corner of the room
with a wild look in his eyes and growling like a wild animal. As the
officer came near him he picked up a chair and threw it across the
room. With the help of an intern who also came running, they subdued
Ramsey and a powerful sedative was administered to him.
The next thing Bill knew he woke up in an ambulance, heavily
restrained to a gurney. He had no idea where he was or what had
happened. He was on his way to a mental hospital. The incident earned
him a short stay there.
Bill’s case gained wide attention when he drove himself to the
Southend Police Station on July 22, 1987 and asked officers to lock him
up because he was a danger to himself and others. During the
conversation with the police officer Bill became enraged a hurled the
police officer, who was much larger than Ramsey, across the parking
lot. It took six other police officers to restrain Ramsey and get him
into a cell inside.

John Zaffis, Lorraine, Bill Ramsey, and Ed in Connecticut

From there Bill’s wolf-like behavior continued. He growled and
was somehow able to wedge his head and arm through a small hatch in the
door. He snarled and snapped at anyone who came near. Another sedative
was administered and members of the local fire department were able to
free him from the hatch.
Ed and Lorraine Warren surmised that Ramsey was possessed by a
“werewolf demon” and insisted he needed an exorcism immediately. Ramsey
traveled back to Connecticut with the Warrens. They took him to Bishop
Robert McKenna at Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church in Monroe. In
attendance were Ramsey, the Warrens, McKenna, and four off-duty police
officers who had agreed to assist should McKenna become out of control
during the rite. Bill says he didn’t expect any results from the
exorcism but McKenna said he recognized the demon in Ramsey immediately
and knew the exorcism would be successful.
Half an hour into the rite McKenna touched a cross to Ramsey’s head.
Ramsey began to thrash about. His lips pulled back from his teeth and
his hands formed into claws. The urge to attack the bishop overtook
him. As he lunged for McKenna two of the off-duty cops grabbed him.
Ramsey continued to snarl and growl. As the bishop spoke in Latin Bill
felt something happening inside him. He suddenly felt weak. The
coldness in his body subsided. Bill felt the wolf leaving his body as
he lost consciousness. Ramsey finally found peace and has since been
free of any further possession.